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      <span class="productTitle">Json.NET - Quick Starts & API Documentation</span><br />
        <span class="topicTitle">Serialization Error Handling</span></div>

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	<p>Json.NET supports error handling during serialization and deserialization. Error handling lets
	you catch an error and choose whether to handle it and continue with serialization or let the error
	bubble up and be thrown in your application.</p>
	<p>Error handling is defined through two methods:
	    the Error event on JsonSerializer and the OnErrorAttribute.</p>
	        <h3>Error Event</h3>

	<p>
	    The <a href="./html/E_Newtonsoft_Json_JsonSerializer_Error.htm">Error</a> event is an event handler found on <a href="./html/T_Newtonsoft_Json_JsonSerializer.htm">JsonSerializer</a>. The error event is raised whenever an
	    exception is thrown while serializing or deserialing JSON. Like all settings found on JsonSerializer
	    it can also be set on <a href="./html/T_Newtonsoft_Json_JsonSerializer.htm">JsonSerializerSettings</a> and passed to the serialization methods on JsonConvert.</p>
	    
	<div class="overflowpanel"> <div class="code">
<div style="font-family: Courier New; font-size: 10pt; color: black;">
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #2b91af;">List</span>&lt;<span style="color: blue;">string</span>&gt; errors = <span style="color: blue;">new</span> <span style="color: #2b91af;">List</span>&lt;<span style="color: blue;">string</span>&gt;();</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp;</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #2b91af;">List</span>&lt;<span style="color: #2b91af;">DateTime</span>&gt; c = <span style="color: #2b91af;">JsonConvert</span>.DeserializeObject&lt;<span style="color: #2b91af;">List</span>&lt;<span style="color: #2b91af;">DateTime</span>&gt;&gt;(<span style="color: #a31515;">@"[</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #a31515;">&nbsp; ""2009-09-09T00:00:00Z"",</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #a31515;">&nbsp; ""I am not a date and will error!"",</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #a31515;">&nbsp; [</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #a31515;">&nbsp; &nbsp; 1</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #a31515;">&nbsp; ],</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #a31515;">&nbsp; ""1977-02-20T00:00:00Z"",</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #a31515;">&nbsp; null,</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #a31515;">&nbsp; ""2000-12-01T00:00:00Z""</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #a31515;">]"</span>,</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; <span style="color: blue;">new</span> <span style="color: #2b91af;">JsonSerializerSettings</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; {</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Error = <span style="color: blue;">delegate</span>(<span style="color: blue;">object</span> sender, <span style="color: #2b91af;">ErrorEventArgs</span> args)</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; {</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; errors.Add(args.ErrorContext.Error.Message);</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; args.ErrorContext.Handled = <span style="color: blue;">true</span>;</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; },</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Converters = { <span style="color: blue;">new</span> <span style="color: #2b91af;">IsoDateTimeConverter</span>() }</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; });</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp;</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: green;">// 2009-09-09T00:00:00Z</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: green;">// 1977-02-20T00:00:00Z</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: green;">// 2000-12-01T00:00:00Z</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp;</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: green;">// The string was not recognized as a valid DateTime. There is a unknown word starting at index 0.</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: green;">// Unexpected token parsing date. Expected String, got StartArray.</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: green;">// Cannot convert null value to System.DateTime.</span></pre>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<p>
    In this example we are deserializing a JSON array to a collection of DateTimes. On the JsonSerializerSettings
    a handler has been assigned to the Error event which will log the error message and mark the error as handled.
</p>
<p>
    The result of deserializing the JSON is three successfully deserialized dates and three error messages:
    one for the badly formatted string, "I am not a date and will error!", one for the nested JSON array and one
    for the null value since the list doesn't allow nullable DateTimes. The event handler has logged these messages
    and Json.NET has continued on deserializing the JSON because the errors were marked as handled.
</p>
<p>
    One thing to note with error handling in Json.NET is that an unhandled error will bubble up and raise the event
    on each of its parents, e.g. an unhandled error when serializing a collection of objects will be raised twice,
    once against the object and then again on the collection. This will let you handle an error either where it
    occurred or on one of its parents.
</p>


<div class="overflowpanel"> <div class="code">
<div style="font-family: Courier New; font-size: 10pt; color: black;">
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #2b91af;">JsonSerializer</span> serializer = <span style="color: blue;">new</span> <span style="color: #2b91af;">JsonSerializer</span>();</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">serializer.Error += <span style="color: blue;">delegate</span>(<span style="color: blue;">object</span> sender, <span style="color: #2b91af;">ErrorEventArgs</span> args)</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; {</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; <span style="color: green;">// only log an error once</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; <span style="color: blue;">if</span> (args.CurrentObject == args.ErrorContext.OriginalObject)</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; errors.Add(args.ErrorContext.Error.Message);</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; };</pre>
</div>
</div></div>

<p>If you aren't immediately handling an error and only want to perform an action against it once then
you can check to see whether the <a href="./html/T_Newtonsoft_Json_Serialization_ErrorEventArgs.htm">ErrorEventArg</a>'s CurrentObject is equal to the OriginalObject.
OriginalObject is the object that threw the error and CurrentObject is the object that the event is being raised
against. They will only equal the first time the event is raised against the OriginalObject.</p>
	    
	        <h3>OnErrorAttribute</h3>

	<p>
	    The <a href="./html/T_Newtonsoft_Json_Serialization_OnErrorAttribute.htm">OnErrorAttribute</a> works much like the other <a href="SerializationCallbacks.html">.NET serialization attributes</a> that Json.NET supports.
	    To use it you simply place the attribute on a method which takes the correct parameters: a StreamingContext and a ErrorContext.
	    The name of the method doesn't matter. 	</p>
	<div class="overflowpanel"> <div class="code">

	<div style="font-family: Courier New; font-size: 10pt; color: black;">
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: blue;">public</span> <span style="color: blue;">class</span> <span style="color: #2b91af;">PersonError</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">{</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; <span style="color: blue;">private</span> <span style="color: #2b91af;">List</span>&lt;<span style="color: blue;">string</span>&gt; _roles;</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp;</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; <span style="color: blue;">public</span> <span style="color: blue;">string</span> Name { <span style="color: blue;">get</span>; <span style="color: blue;">set</span>; }</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; <span style="color: blue;">public</span> <span style="color: blue;">int</span> Age { <span style="color: blue;">get</span>; <span style="color: blue;">set</span>; }</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; <span style="color: blue;">public</span> <span style="color: #2b91af;">List</span>&lt;<span style="color: blue;">string</span>&gt; Roles</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; {</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; <span style="color: blue;">get</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; {</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; <span style="color: blue;">if</span> (_roles == <span style="color: blue;">null</span>)</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; <span style="color: blue;">throw</span> <span style="color: blue;">new</span> <span style="color: #2b91af;">Exception</span>(<span style="color: #a31515;">"Roles not loaded!"</span>);</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp;</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; <span style="color: blue;">return</span> _roles;</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; }</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; <span style="color: blue;">set</span> { _roles = <span style="color: blue;">value</span>; }</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; }</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; <span style="color: blue;">public</span> <span style="color: blue;">string</span> Title { <span style="color: blue;">get</span>; <span style="color: blue;">set</span>; }</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp;</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; [<span style="color: #2b91af;">OnError</span>]</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; <span style="color: blue;">internal</span> <span style="color: blue;">void</span> OnError(<span style="color: #2b91af;">StreamingContext</span> context, <span style="color: #2b91af;">ErrorContext</span> errorContext)</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; {</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; errorContext.Handled = <span style="color: blue;">true</span>;</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; }</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">}</pre>
</div>
</div></div>
	<p>
	In this example accessing the the Roles property will throw an exception when no roles have
	been set. The HandleError method will set the error when serializing Roles as handled and allow Json.NET to continue
	serializing the class.
	</p>
	
	<div class="overflowpanel"> <div class="code">
<div style="font-family: Courier New; font-size: 10pt; color: black;">
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #2b91af;">PersonError</span> person = <span style="color: blue;">new</span> <span style="color: #2b91af;">PersonError</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; {</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; Name = <span style="color: #a31515;">"George Michael Bluth"</span>,</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; Age = 16,</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; Roles = <span style="color: blue;">null</span>,</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; &nbsp; Title = <span style="color: #a31515;">"Mister Manager"</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp; };</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp;</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: blue;">string</span> json = <span style="color: #2b91af;">JsonConvert</span>.SerializeObject(person, <span style="color: #2b91af;">Formatting</span>.Indented);</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp;</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #2b91af;">Console</span>.WriteLine(json);</pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: green;">//{</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: green;">//&nbsp; "Name": "George Michael Bluth",</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: green;">//&nbsp; "Age": 16,</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: green;">//&nbsp; "Title": "Mister Manager"</span></pre>
<pre style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: green;">//}</span></pre>
</div>
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